An individual who may require a wheelchair, a walker or other assist device to facilitate movement, may find it difficult to enter, exit and be supported within a bathtub or shower. A caretaker, nurse or family member may be necessary to assist a user in getting into, out of a bathtub or shower. Seating devices assist and support individuals within a bathtub or shower.
Some bathtub seating devices take the form of a bench that is positioned between the sidewalls of the bathtub. These benches may be supported by plurality of legs extending to a bottom of a bathtub. Such benches provide a seating surface on which an individual may be placed. Some bench type seats are designed to be more simply supported on the top of the sidewalls of the bathtub and may include devices for engaging opposing sidewalls of the bathtub.
To facilitate the manner in which an individual may be positioned on a bath chair or seat, other types of bench supports may include a portion that is either mounted directly over a sidewall of the bathtub or cantilevered outwardly therefrom to provide initial support for an individual being assisted. By initially seating an individual on a cantilevered seat, the individual may thereafter be moved so that his or her legs are brought inwardly to the bathtub while their weight is supported by the seat thereafter. The individual may then be shifted along the bench within the confines of the bathtub.
Some types of prior art structures are permanently installed adjacent the bathtub or shower enclosure. Other types of portable seating devices are supported both along the bottom of the bathtub and by an adjacent floor structure. In one application, a slidable seat is mounted on a frame having a pair of legs in the bathtub and a pair of legs that engage the floor exteriorly of the bathtub.